Inside the Boundary
by Sims4000
Summary: Re-write of the series Beyond the Boundary. Features an OC as one of the main characters, as we follow another story within Beyond the Boundary. Sōyā is a friend that is being inserted into the story and this is what his story is all about, Inside the Boundary. Story about love for some and adventure for others, but who gets what? End of chapter 1 holds a more in depth explanation.
1. Chapter 1

**Inside the Boundary**

 **Carmine**

Well if you didn't notice now, I'm here to tell you that I'm going to write a story for Beyond the Boundary. I've recently watched it and it has a special place for me because I think it is a near masterpiece in my eyes. I instinctively went to see if there were any decent stories involving it and there were a few between Mirai and Akihito, which was amazing to ready by the way, but I wanted a story that involved Ai majorly, to the point of her having some sort of relationship. I've actually come to the conclusion that none of the current characters in Beyond the boundary really pair with Ai enough for a relationship, so I've decided to make an OC, so yes, one of this stories main characters will be an OC. I'll be starting from episode 1 to insert the OC so he can go along with the plot more extensively. I'll leave a longer Author's Note at the bottom explaining more after the first chapter in over. Thanks for the read! I beg of you, please read the authors not at the bottom to clear up any confusion you may/will have about the story direction, I will make it very understandable!

Also note, whenever you see a line after a large body of writing come across the page, it most usually signals either a scene changed/ending or a POV change.

I've updated this 3 times trying to fix the lines not showing up, and I fixed it now :D

* * *

It was the end of the school day, and Akihito was walking in front of the school, deciding what way to go home. Walking with him was one of his best friends and Spirit World warrior, Sōyā. The two were walking past the schools front door, not much different that any other day, when Akihito stopped all of the sudden. Sōyā took notice to this.

"Akkey," Sōyā spoke calmly. "What the matter?"

It's then when Akihito took off into the school, leaving Sōyā behind wondering what was happening. It's then that he noticed there was something, or rather someone standing up on the roof of the school, rather close to the edge.

 _"What do we have here?"_ Sōyā thought to himself. He looked up and saw the rather short girl standing on the ledge, but he body language was weird. She didn't look as if she was about to jump, but rather just waiting there. He tried to examine her more closely, and he noticed she had what seemed to be extremely light pink hair that doesn't go any farther than her chin. She also had a pair of red, thick rimmed glasses.

" _If Akkey is heading up there to talk to her,"_ Sōyā thought to himself. _"There is no doubt he'll mention her glasses and his love of 'Bespectacled Beauties' to her."_

After a short period of thought and waiting, he heard Akihito yell out something inaudible, but at the end her heard "At any rate, someone as stunning in glasses as you, simply must no die!". After another short but quiet pause, Akihito yelled "In short, I love glasses!". After hearing that being yelled, the girl who was standing on the ledge muttered something that Akihito probably heard, but Sōyā was to far away to understand. The next thing Sōyā noticed, the girl had jumped backwards towards the fence, leaping over it almost effortlessly, while a sword of a red substance formed in her hand as she did so. After that, she was out of vision.

 _"So that's Kuriyama-chan."_ Sōyā thought to himself. _"She's actually pretty cute for someone of her reputation, but I guess judging off by what you hear is a bad thing to do regardless."_

He had the idea pop into his head after he noticed the short pink hair, and it was confirmed by the sword of red substance, which he only assumed was the cursed clans bloodline. He only knew this little bit of information because of Izumi Nase, oldest sister of he and Akihito's best friend Hiroomi Nase. They had a conversation about the girl, and she explained part of her lineage to Sōyā.

After a minute of waiting patiently for Akihito to come back down, he decided to head home regardless, because at this point it wasn't any of his business.

Besides, he needed to talk to Hiroomi about some things that were borrowed and never returned, and he felt that talking to Kuriyama-chan was something Akihito needed to do by himself.

* * *

20 minutes after leaving Akihito to deal with Kuriyama-chan, Sōyā reached the Nase complex, finding that Hiroomi was standing outside, just waiting it seemed.

"Oi, Hiroomi," Sōyā called out to the seemingly distracted teenager. "I came to get that anime DVD that I let you borrow. It's been over a month and I'd like it back."

Hiroomi looked back at Sōyā, and stared at him hard. He opened his mouth slowly, seeming to choose his words slowly.

"But Sōyā..." Hiroomi said slowly. Sōyā began to wonder what excuse he would use this time.

"How..." Hiroomi paused, almost for dramatic effect. "How will I make I make Mitsuki-chan realize how good being a cute little sister is!?"

Hiroomi held a dramatic tear drop as Sōyā had a visibly large vein popping out of his forehead. He knew some sort of sub par excuse would come from his mouth, but thankfully he was one of his most trusted friends, so he decided to be nice today.

"Hiroomi," Sōyā said calmly. "You can have it for one more week, after that I need it back."

Hiroomi's eyes lit up at this, show happiness beyond recognition.

"Yes Sōyā," Hiroomi said confidently. "I will have this DVD set back to you in a week's time, I swear on my adorable little sister!"

Sōyā sighed, knowing that he wasn't likely to get that set back anytime soon, but it didn't bother him to much. Sōyā then straightened out his expression, and Hiroomi took notice of it, as it said he came here for a different reason as well.

"Hiroomi," Sōyā started off. "I want you to tell me more about Kuriyama-chan. I know that the Nase household is in charge of this domain, so this is the best place to get so information about her."

Hiroomi dawned a relatively serious expression, which soften into a smile after a second.

"I'm sorry Sōyā," Hiroomi said almost disappointed. "I can't tell you anything more than you already know about Kuriyama. I know Izumi has told you about her already, and I hate to say that what she told you is what she told me."

They both looked at each other, both with blank looks on there faces. They weren't distrustful of each other, quite the opposite actually. They were both just a bit shocked that there was no more information to be had between the two.

"Well that's fine then," Sōyā said with a hint of sadness in his voice. "We'll I just want to let you know that Akihito had a little confrontation with her about half an hour ago on the school roof. Nothing bad, but I feel like it definitely won't end there by any mean."

Hiroomi was lost in thought for a second following what Sōyā said, but then he smiled.

"Well Sōyā," He said happily. "You've always had an amazing sense of judgment, so you're probably right about it not ending there. I think we just need to make sure nothing bad happens to either of the two, besides, what best friends wouldn't do that either way?"

Sōyā smiled because of the way Hiroomi was. He was a pervert who had a large sis-con, but he also showed a much more serious side. This was something that made him such a talented Spirit World Warrior.

"Alright then," Sōyā said as he turned around and started walking away. "I'll talk to you tomorrow at school then Hiroomi. Be good." Sōyā held his hand up and waved goodbye to his friend, as he made his way back to his apartment, deciding he was gonna rest instead of doing homework.

"I need to get more sleep," Sōyā said with a yawn. "I think this homework can wait until tomorrow."

With that, he headed home with the thought of Kuriyama-chan and Akihito in his mind.

" _I wonder what will happen next."_

* * *

The week after that day went by at the same pace it always did for everyone. Sōyā had learned from Akihito that Kuriyama had stabbed him right through the heart. Sōyā would have been more worried if he wasn't immortal, but because he was, he just scoffed it off and laughed. Akihito continued to have several run ins with Kuriyama throughout the week, resulting him being stabbed about 6 times.

On the other hand, Sōyā had been trying to find out a little more information about Kuriyama-chan from Izumi, but he never got her alone to ask her about anything. He decided to just wait until the time comes to him to learn about Kuriyama..

After a exceptionally long school day, Sōyā was walking around the school campus, waiting for Akihito to finish with his literary club so they could walk home. He already had it in the back of his mind that he'd be walking home alone today, again, because this is about the time when Kuriyama-chan attack Akihito nearly every day. He would be lying if he said he didn't stay around to see Akihito run around trying to avoid her.

As if on cue, he saw Akihito running away from what seemed to be someone chasing him, and he grabbed a bucket and hurled back at his pursuer. Sōyā then heard Kuriyama-chan's voice as she said "Hey! You made me kill the bucket!". Sōyā laughed at hearing this and at his friend being helplessly chased around by someone so much smaller than he is. Akihito and Kuriyama both made there way back inside the school, and about 3 minutes later, a window exploded from the school, with what appeared to be a Youmu falling out the window and running past two oblivious students on the sidewalk. Soon after, Nino-san jumped from the same window and seemed to be in pursuit of the Youmu. That's when Sōyā decided he would head home, as Akihito obviously wouldn't be walking home with him today as well.

"Maybe I'll stop and get something to eat on the way," Sōyā said quietly to himself. "I am feeling pretty hungry."

With that, Sōyā made his way to a restaurant he frequented often, deciding a omelet, be however late it was, didn't sound to bad right now.

* * *

Sitting down in a booth alone, Sōyā was calmly waiting for his order to arrive. He had ordered a simple rice omelet, with a bottle of water of course. He was minding his own business when he heard someone call out his name from the side.

"Oi," The voice called. "Sōyā, over here."

Sōyā looked over and saw something that took him by surprise. It was Akihito and Kuriyama-chan. The last two people he expected to see here, together of all things.

"Akkey? Kuriyama-chan?" He said with some confusion. "What are you two doing here?"

"Well I might have promised Kuriyama-san that'd I would buy her some food if she stopped attacking me.."

"Attacking you for the rest of the day." Kuriyama stated matter of factually, interrupting Akihito. "I never said for ever, just for today. Fuyukai desu!

Sōyā could see a vein of irritation popping up from Akihito's forehead, so he offered a seat to the two. Akihito sitting next to him and Kuriyama-chan took the seat across from the two. After the two new diners ordered there meals, they talked about various things, mainly about Spirit World Warriors and Youmu.

"Wait," Akihito said surprised. "So you're telling me you've caught zero Youmu?"

Kuriyama's face quickly went red with embarrassment, but she was quick to retort.

"No I wouldn't say that," She said quickly to ease her embarrassment. "I would just say the number I've caught is close to zero."

Akihito was about to laugh, but Kuriyama continued to talk.

"But there is a reason honestly." She said faintly. "My clan is the cursed blood clan, which has been hated against by almost everyone as long as we'd been around. I try not to draw any attention to myself, but I'm the last of my clan now anyway."

It was silent for a bit, then Sōyā had a question he wanted to ask pop into his head.

"Kuriyama-chan," He said with a bit of intrigue in his voice. "why do you keep targeting and attacking Akihito?"

Akihito leaned in a bit, mainly because was awfully curious as to why she was stabbing he so much.

"B-Because," She stuttered at first. "You're a youmu, and I decided you would be alright to help me. Then I found out you were immortal and it all changed a bit..."

"Then why didn't you stop after the first time you stabbed me?" Akihito asked, almost pleading with his eyes."

"Because you can't die," She said nonchalantly. "No matter how many time I stab you you heal, so whats the big deal?"

Sōyā was nearly laughing at this point. Kuriyama did have a small point, but she was forgetting that even though Akihito is immortal, he still feels pain, and he wasn't the only one thinking it.

Kuriyama spoke up again. "So that means I can stab you all I want and you won't die. I wasn't accustomed to taking youmu down so..."

"hold it, so you were using me as practice?" Akihito questioned sternly.

Kuriyama yelled back. "Why not? You've got nothing to lose!"

"I do, too! That crap is super hard on my heart." He said point meticulously to his heart. "I told you! I can feel pain! Do you have any idea how bad that hurts?!"

A waitress then appeared next to the table with a tray of food, setting it all down in front of Kuriyama.

"…."

"YOU ORDERED MORE FOOD?!" Akihito yelled comically.

"Fuyukai desu" Kuriyama muttered.

Sōyā sat silently as he enjoyed his omelet as the two other guests feuded back and forth about the extreme amount of dinner costs that were surely piling up.

* * *

After dinner, Akihito both said goodbye to each other, stating that they should see each other sometime in the next couple of days to talk. Sōyā also said his goodbyes to Kuriyama-chan. They were both very polite to each other, so there wasn't any hostility to be seen. Sōyā proceeded to go on his way home while both Kuriyama and Akihito went the opposite way, Akihito more than likely not being done talking with her. All Sōyā knew was he wanted to go home and rest, and he had some overdue homework he should.

"I guess I can do the homework tomorrow." He said to himself.

* * *

Back at the Nase household, Hiroomi was waiting on Mitsuki to get home, while also reflecting on a conversation he had with Izumi a bit ago.

 **FLASHBACK**

 _Hiroomi had finally gotten his eldest sister Izumi alone to talk, and he was sure she already knew what she wanted to talk about._

" _Hiroomi, I already know you''re going to ask about Kuriyama and her past." Izumi said calmly. "Unfortunately at this time, I'm not gonna be able to tell you anything."_

 _Hiroomi looked at his elder sister sternly before speaking._

" _I have a right to know about the ongoing of this matter, Izumi." Hiroomi said with his mind set. "You need to tell me."_

 _Izumi frowned slightly because he was partially right, but there was a time and place for everything, and now wasn't it._

" _Well," She sad with a tint of sadness is her voice. "You and Sōyā-kun will have to wait until the time I deem right."_

 _Hiroomi looked at Izumi and smiled sadly. He knew this isn't the end of this conversation, but the end of what he would get at this point and time._

 _"Me and Sōyā..." Hiroomi said slowly. "We just want to be prepared and ready. Ready for what happens."_

 _Izumi smiled. She knew regardless of what happened Sōyā and her brother would be ready for anything. She knew Sōyā could handle himself as well. Out of all the Spirit World Warriors under the Nase's control, he was one of the strongest and reliable. He might not have been as smart as Mitsuki, or talkative as Hiroomi, but he was trustworthy and always did as he said he would._

 _"Hiroomi," Izumi said quietly. "How long have you known Sōyā? It's been about 8 years right? And he still has the same messy black hair and carries around that pocket-watch in his pocket. However he may be, he will always be ready, as I expect you to be._

 _Hiroomi smiled. "It's actually been 9 years sis, but yeah. He sure hasn't changed, appearance wise or personality wise. You wouldn't guess from looking at his calm demeanor tho, he is actually pretty unique. He loves anime and a big book reader. I'm actually surprised he hasn't came to the literary club yet."_

 _Izumi smiled as she heard her brother talk about his friend. She was glad he had someone to rely on._

 **FLASHBACK ENDED**

Sitting on his bed, he went over his elder sisters words and smiled. He knew he'd probably find out more sooner or later. He decided to stop thinking about it all and finish watching the DVD Sōyā had lent him. Besides, how else would he make Mitsuki realize how good being a cute little sister is?

* * *

Authors Note – Well here's the first chapter of Inside the Boundary! I chose the name because it will follow the story of a new character inside the inner story, while helping the main story along as well!

For this story, I'm actually going to try it very differently compared to past stories. I'm going to basically make each episode into a chapter here. Its going to mainly follow Sōyā, my OC. His name in English is Sawyer, but I feel the Japanese sounds better to compliment the story. Each chapter I post here will be the equivalent of the episode it represents, which will be the chapter title. Most chapters are going to follow along the same base as the episode, but from a different viewpoint. That means that there will be some scenes that I will cut out from going into the chapter, but it will be remembered and mentioned by characters in future chapters. In short, they won't be written, but they will still happen. An example of such is the Youmu in Kuriyama's apartment that her and Akihito and her start to fight at the end of episode 1. It will be omitted from the writing, but it will still be referenced and possibly flash backed too later on. In absence of these part/scenes I omit, I will be adding completely new scenes involving Sōyā most of the time, or some news scenes with other characters. That being said, I am going to try and keep close to the original episode as possible for scenes that are in the anime and in writing. I even showed that in this chapter by using some of the exact wording used in episode 1.

Besides all I've just said, this story will contain two different main ships. The main one will be Ai and Sōyā, which is what I'm hoping to base the story off of. The other main ship will be the obligatory Akihito and Kuriyama, which I think is essential to a good Beyond the Boundary story. Otherwise, I might try and throw some fluff in for some other characters, but I'm still undecided about for now.

Well I want to thank everyone that went and read everything, it means so much to me! Make sure to favorite/follow to get notifications when I post another chapter. If you have any criticism, leave a review so I can better myself as a writer, and besides, I love to read any review, be It a helpful review or a flame. Thanks for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

**Inside the Boundary**

 **Ultramarine**

Authors Note at the bottom.

Enjoy!

* * *

After a night of sleep that was apparently much needed, Sōyā finally awoke the Thursday morning. It had been both a rough nights sleep, but also a soothing one once he was actually asleep. He didn't remember any particular dreams he'd had, but he was sure they were nice one point or another.

He got out of bed, only wearing a pair of gray sweatpants as his night attire, and he made his way to his dresser immediately to retrieve is pocket watch that he'd always kept on his person. He threw is around his neck while he decided what he was going to wear for the day. He had to dress in something that goes with school uniform, but he was going a few places that he wanted to look nice for. He eventually settled on a new pair of Khaki pants with a navy blue hoodie, followed with some basic tennis shoes.

As he made his way into the kitchen to grab a snack before he left, he saw the clock that ready only 7:30am, which was both good and bad. Good because there wouldn't be many lines and less people for his day out today, but bad that he missed out on a few decent hours of sleep.

"I guess early is better than never," Her grumbled to himself. He grabbed his phone and wallet, placing them in his left pocket and back pocket respectively, while he removed the pocket-watch from his neck and gingerly placed it in his right pocket, with the chain just slightly hanging out a bit to see. He then headed out the door to get on his way, were he immediately ran into Akihito right outside his door.

"Oi," Sōyā said, gathering Akihito's attention. "What are you doing her Akkey? We have school today...Don't we?"

Akihito laughed at his friends unawareness, but answered back truthfully, no matter how tempting it was to mess with his friend.

"Yes Sōyā," Akihito said playfully. "We do have school today. I'm actually here to pick up Kuriyama-san. We had a little yomu encounter in her apartment last night, and she'd going to get it appraised by Ayaka-san."

There was a short silence.

"So..." Sōyā said slowly. "You were at Kuriyama's apartment last night? You really are a pervert."

"I WAS HELPING HER CATCH A YOMU." Akihito yelled as Sōyā was to busy laughing. He couldn't help himself to the joke.

"Wow," Akihito said with fake tears rolling down his face. "And here I was being nice by telling school was today. Some friend you must really be." Akihito got down on all fours and began to "sob", but Sōyā knew when his was really crying.

"Come on Akkey," Sōyā said as he started walking in the way Akihito was facing. "Lets go pick up Kuriyama-chan and head to Ayaka-san's shop. It was somewhere I needed to go today."

Akihito smirked as a new idea popped into his head.

"Oh," He said almost acting shocked. "You mean you're going to see Ai-chan."

Sōyā stopped in half stride and stood completely still.

"N-No you idiot," Sōyā said very nervously. "I-I just have a small yomu that needs a-appraisal. Nothing m-more."

Akihito could see that he had obviously won this little confrontation, but he decided to go for the overkill.

"Well that's fine then Sōyā," Akihito said nonchalantly. "Besides, I heard some boy asked Ai-chan on a date not so far ago, I wonder how it went."

A vein nearly popped in Sōyā's head.

"How long ago did this happen?" Sōyā asked nervously. "Did she even go on that date? Akihito I need answers!"

Akihito smirked victoriously as he knew he had broken the black haired boy down to pieces.

"I guess we should go get Kuriyama-san and hurry to Ayaka-san's shop," Akihito said nearly teasingly. "What do you think, Sōyā?" Almost as soon as Akihito finished his sentence, Sōyā rushed down the hall to who knows where.

"Sōyā," Akihito said while chuckling. "you really need to work on your personal more." He finished talking by walking towards Kuriyama-san, hoping to get to her before it was to late in the morning.

" _I wonder if Sōyā knows where she lives."_ Akihito thought to himself.

* * *

After a 15 minutes walk, both Akihito and Sōyā made there way to Kuriyama's door and knocked, waiting for an answer. They were greeted by a bed head ridden Kuriyama head, and the phrase "Fuyukai desu". After another 10 minutes of waiting, Kuriyama-san joined the two boys and made there way to Ayaka-san's appraisal shop. Both Akihito and Sōyā knew where they were going, but Kuriyama was completely lost, especially when the boys stopped in front of what seemed to be a coffee shop or photo studio.

"Senpai," said confused. "Why are we at a coffee shop. I thought we were going to get this yomu appraised."

Akihito smiled and spoke. "That is only the front." He said calmly. Suddenly, the door swung open and they were greeted by a young brown haired girl barely taller than Kuriyama-san.

"Kanbara-san, good morning!" The girl said. She then gazed over to Sōyā as well. "Good morning to you as well, Sōyā-san." She almost sounded happier speaking to Akihito, but Sōyā didn't take much notice.

"Good morning," Akihito said. Sōyā also said hello quietly, trying to hide his nervousness and small blush. "Is Ayaka-san around?" Akihito asked.

"I'm so sorry," the girl said. "She was up late last night, so she's still..." The girl made the sleeping gesture with her hands and head.

"I see," Akihito said almost sadly. "There was a yomu I was hoping she could take a look at."

"You caught a Yomu? How unusual of you..." The girl was interrupted by the sight of Kuriyama's blood sword.

"Wh-Wh-Wh-Why are you talking so casually to a yomu?!" Kuriyama asked while stuttering and shocked. "D-Don't tell me you never noticed she was a Yomu?!"

Both Sōyā and Akihito sweat dropped dramatically.

"We know," Sōyā said calmly, seeming to have a more serious tone for some reason. "But in a sense, she and Ayaka-san are on our side. Please put down the sword."

Kuriyama slowly lowered her sword, which killed the tension in Sōyā, who was worried about the brown haired girls well being for a second. Sōyā spoke up again, talking to Kuriyama mainly.

"As you can see," Sōyā said calmly. "She is just like us. She's no different than a normal person, beside being a yomu."

"You say that like its a regular thing," Kuriyama huffed. "Fuyukai desu."

Sōyā and Akihito both gave her a sneer as they went on with the conversation.

"Kuriyama-chan," Sōyā said. "I'd like you to meet Ai Shinko. She lives here with Ayaka-san and helps run the place."

Ai held out her hand to Kuriyama-san gingerly, which Kuriyama accepted cautiously, but she didn't see any harm in it. She seemed as nice and sweet as any other girl.

"Kuriyama-chan," Sōyā said. "You still seem unconvinced."

Ai spoke up as well. "We also have a certificate proving we're aloud to do what we do! Do you want to see it?"

Kuriyama shook her head no nervously.

"I'm sorry," She said repeatedly. "I just am not used to this like everyone else."

Ai smiled at her and her greenness, which was nothing to be ashamed of. Sōyā caught the smile and smiled himself, because he was always happy to see Ai smile, regardless of why.

"Akihito," Everyone turned around to see who had called the name. They were all met by Mitsuki-chan.

"Hey Mitsuki," Akihito responded swiftly.

"Who's that," Kuriyama questioned clueless.

"Oh," Akihito said. "You two haven't met? This is..."

"You're a filthy player, Senpai!" Kuriyama screamed while covering herself from Akihito.

"How'd you reach that conclusion?!" Akihito yelled back at the cowering girl.

"Akihito, you're horrible!" Mitsuki said calmly.

"Don't play along with her." Akihito turned his voice back at Mitsuki. "That isn't funny!"

Akihito cleared his voice and held his arm out towards Kuriyama-san. "This is Mirai Kuriyama-san. I'm sure you've heard of her Mitsuki." Kuriyama bowed when she reached eye contact.

"Oh," Mitsuki said shockingly. "So she is real."

Akihito frowned. "Whats that supposed to mean?" He asked her.

"Simple put," She said collectedly. "I figured you invented an imaginary girl who's cute in glasses and says 'Mew' at the end of sentences since you're so pathetic that you can only sustain yourself through escapism."

With every word she said, the vein in his forehead bulged bigger.

"I'm amazed at how easily you can dis me." He said with a scowl on his face. "No one is this cold-hearted."

It was silent for another moment, then Sōyā spoke up.

"Hey Ai-chan," He said almost nervously. "Do you mind if I can get some coffee before we head to school, we still have some time before we need to leave."

Ai smiled immediately.

"Sure thing Sōyā-san." Ai turned around and motioned the boy into the building behind her. He followed nervously. Akihito had decided that he probably should try and give Sōyā some alone time, so he spoke up.

"I don't know about you guys," He said aloud. "But I'm heading to school now, I don't want to wait until everyone rushes in the last minute."

Everyone around him nodded there heads in agreement.

"Sōyā and Ai both know there way to school," Mitsuki said coldly. "They'll make it there eventually."

Leading the pack, Akihito and Mitsuki started walking in the direction of the school, leaving an unknowing Sōyā alone with Ai, which depending on how you looked at it, was a either great thing, or in Sōyā's view, a terrifying thing.

* * *

In the building, Ai had lead Sōyā back to the kitchen to make his cup of coffee, seeing no need for him to sit down and be waited on. She started everything up as Sōyā just stood there nervously looking around, unsure of what to say or to do. Thankfully, he wasn't the first person to speak up.

"Hey Sōyā-san," Ai spoke up cheerfully. "Whats that shiny thing in your pocket?"

Sōyā was confused at first, but then he realized that she was talking about his pocket-watch.

"Oh, this thing?" He said quietly, with almost a stutter in his voice. "It's something that's been passed down in my family for generations. We were all Spirit world Warriors, but since I'm the last one in my family, it's all for me now."

Ai looked at the pocket-watch Sōyā held in his hand closely. It was a fairly old watch itself, probably more than 500+ years in age. It was made of an unknown material, but it was nearly unbreakable, at least from past use. It was very simple, silver in color, with a large "S" on the middle of it.

"What does the big S on the cover mean?" Ai asked curiously.

Sōyā smiled. It was something pretty important to him.

"Actually," It depends really. "That pocket-watch is made of an unknown metal, and whoever is the owner of it, is takes the letter of there first name onto the cover."

Ai looked a bit confused but seemed to understand to concept of it.

"Well," Ai continued curiously. "What do you do with it?"

Sōyā smiled at this question, almost waiting for her to ask it.

"Well honestly," He said proudly. "It's what helps me face off against yomu. Whenever a user puts it on around there neck, they get enhanced by its effects. Nothing to major, just faster and stronger mainly."

Ai looked at the pocket-watch in awe after hearing what it could do, but was interrupted by the coffee machine signaling his coffee was done. Ai got his coffee in a small to go cup and handed it to him. Sōyā tried to pull out his wallet to pay, but Ai wouldn't take it. She couldn't from a friend. This disappointed Sōyā, but he made up for it mentally by putting what he was going to pay in the tip jar while she wasn't looking.

* * *

Both Ai and Sōyā made there way outside to see that there friends had left them behind. Ai was confused why they left without them, but Sōyā knew perfectly why.

" _Damn Akihito,"_ He thought menacingly. _"He did this on purpose!"_

"I guess we'll just have to walk to school together alone then," Ai said densely to Sōyā's situation. "It's no big deal to me a least."

The two started walking towards the school next to each other. Most wouldn't consider it anything at all, but Sōyā was about to lose himself in happiness. He didn't get any alone time with Ai, and even though he was to afraid to do anything, it was still nice. While walking, an idea popped into his head, and he decided to act on it a bit.

"So," Sōyā started nervously. "Ai-chan, Akihito told me you were asked out sometime not so long ago. How did it go?"

"Oh that?" She said nonchalantly. "It was nothing. It was a boy named Chang. I've known him for a bit now, but he was just a friend if anything. I told him I wasn't interested in a relationship at the time."

Sōyā's was both happy and heartbroken and the very same time. He was happy that she hadn't gone out with the boy who asked her, but what she said after that nearly broke him completely.

"Although," Ai continued slowly. "I almost feel bad, because I lied a bit."

Sōyā was extremely curious as to what she was going to say next.

"I kinds..." Ai said almost as if she was irritated. "I kinda lied to him. I am interested in a relationship, just not with him. I don't know who right now, but someone's out there I guess."

Sōyā's heart nearly healed itself because it means he still had a chance to make himself and Ai happy, however, he had to wait. He knows he couldn't do anything now if he wanted to or not, he was to afraid.

"Well its all about what feels right." Sōyā said confidently. "You gotta do what you want to do, not what you think you need to do." He smiled towards Ai and she returned the warm smile instantly.

"You're right Sōyā," Ai said with confidence. "I'm just going to let what happens happen!"

Sōyā sighed.

" _I really hope I'm what happens, Ai-chan."_ Sōyā thought to himself.

* * *

 **Akihito's POV**

The school day had gone alright for how Akihito figured it would. He never had high expectations for school days, especially ones without Literary Club after so. He had decided to goto Ayaka-san's shop after school. He had received a postcard from his mother, which was blank at first glance. He knew his mother to well to know that there was some sort of message to come from it, but he needed Ayaka-san's help activating it.

" _I guess I'll just take Kuriyama-san back to get her yomu evaluated later then."_ He thought to himself as he headed down the street, towards the shop.

* * *

Inside Ayaka-san's shop, Akihito was sitting in front of Ayaka-san with the seemingly blank postcard in front of her.

"Well Akihito-kun," Ayake said gracefully. "Lets see what one this postcard, shall we?"

Akihito smiled nervously. Hs mother always had a few screws loose, so he didn't know what to expect.

"Yeah," He said with a nervous smile. "Lets get it started."

* * *

 **Back to** **Sōyā POV**

 **(Same Time as the postcard reading.)**

It had been a tough day at school for Sōyā, mainly because he was scolded for sleeping most of the day. It wasn't unusual for him, he always slept during certain classes, and staying awake for a few because of people in the class he enjoys. Today had also been a tough day for another pretty big reason. The yomu were acting vary aggressive, even lower level ones as well. He had in his pockets 3 yomu stones just from today alone. He had decided to take them to ayaka-san's shop later that night, but first he was going to see Hiroomi first. Being part of the Nase houseold means he would know the goings on around the area, and hopefully that will explain the aggressiveness of the yomu he caught today.

" _I know it might be nothing, but things don't feel right."_ Sōyā thought to himself.

* * *

After some walking, Sōyā made it to the Nase residence. He headed in without knocking, mainly because he was a good friend, so they didn't really mind the intrusion...or at least Hiroomi didn't.

"You know," A calm voice behind him spoke. "Most people would call the police when someone enters without knocking first"

Sōyā turned around to be greeted by Mitsuki, who was wearing her usually monotone expression, along with her school uniform.

"I just came here to talk to Hiroomi," He said defeatedly. "Theres something we need to talk about."

Mitsuki looked curiously.

"Well then take back that awful anime DVD you gave him," She said in disgust. "It's terrible and has no taste."

This irritated Sōyā, just because she knew how much he liked the anime in question.

"Don't inslut my pleasures," He said with a glare. "I don't judge you."

Mitsuki walked away, but not before muttering the word "Pervert". Sōyā ignored it and went to Hiroomi's room and knocked twice before entering immediately.

"Oi, Sōyā." Hiroomi said, almost as if he wasn't surprised. "How's it going?"

Sōyā sat down in the office chair and spun it around a few times before replying.

"Not much," He said with a bored tone. "I just have a few questions. You don't mind do you?"

Hiroomi gave the go ahead with a nod, which let Sōyā speak up again.

"Today at school," Sōyā said almost annoyed. "I came across three yomu. I'm fine with that, but this was different. These were very aggressive. If I hadn't handled them when I did, they would have caused some uneeded trouble."

Hiroomi looked on, waiting for the main question to be asked.

"So what I'm looking to ask," Sōyā continued. "is do you know anything about this, like why they're acting so aggressive lately? I know the yomu Akihito and Kuriyama took on yesterday to was extremely aggressive as well. I know it's not a coincidence."

Hiroomi was silent. This forced Sōyā to stare intently until Hiroomi spoke.

"Actually," Hiroomi said with almost a sarcastic tone. "Akihito came and asked me the same thing earlier. I told him I really wasn't inclined to tell him anything. What makes you think I can tell you anymore?"

Sōyā stared intently at Hiroomi.

"Because Hiroomi," Sōyā with a tone of full seriousness. "I have a really bad feeling about the next few couple of days. Something isn't right."

Hiroomi sighed, as if he was defeated. He knew I would be better to keep him caught up and possibly warned.

"Alright Sōyā," Hiroomi admitted. "I'll tell you."

There was a pause before Hiroomi started again.

"It's the Hollow Shadow," Hiroomi said with a sharp tone of seriousness. "I already know that you know a little bit about the Hollow Shadow already. It's close to passing through the town. It will make a lot of yomu, human form or not, act weird. Thats whats going on. Its gonna be hard for a while."

Both were silent as they let whats said set in. Hiroomi was also right, Sōyā did know a little bit about the Hollow Shadow. It was a yomu, but without an actual body. Thats what made I all the more dangerous. It possessed people and Spirit World Warriors alike. It wasn't something to be light about.

"Hey Sōyā," Hiroomi spoke to him. "I was going to come to you about this later, but nows better I guess. Tomorrow night is when its supposed to come into full effect over the yomu. I want to ask you help. We're going to try and deflect it from the town."

Sōyā was listening intently, out of both concern and interest.

"I'm going to be on the edge of Town, creating a barrier to hold it away or at least try and convince it to go another way." Hiroomi continued. "I know you can create a very well built barrier. It might not be as strong as me or Izumi's, but it should be able to deter any dangerous yomu. When you think you've put enough barriers up in the Town, I want you to come to the edge of town as soon as you can to support everyone else. Can you do that."

Sōyā thought to himself quietly.

"I can do that," Sōyā answered assuringly. "Besides, I won't be able to rest easy with this feeling in the air."

An expression of what looked to be relief washed over Hiroomi's face.

"I really appriciate it," Hiroomi said with gratitude in his voice. "I really do Sōyā, you don't understand."

Sōyā got up and went to leave the room.

"In return," He spoke as he exited the door. "Make sure to return my DVD when you said you would."

Hiroomi laughed at this, because even at the most serious times, Sōyā found a way to ease the tension.

"I'll try my best Sōyā," Hiroomi said with a smirk. "I'll try my best."

Sōyā left Hiroomi to his room by himself and proceeded home, because he had a few things to think about.

" _Yomu are going to act weird huh?"_ Sōyā thought to himself. _"I guess while I'm in Town tomorrow night, I'll check up on Ai-chan._

" _I hope nothing happens, Ai-chan..."_

* * *

 **Authors Note – Well, here is Chapter 2 of Inside the Boundary. The chapter itself deviated from the episode more than chapter 1 did, but I expected it to because there were a few scenes I left out because they were less important. The major one left out last chapter was Kuriyama and Akihito capturing the first yomu, and this episode I left out Akihito'smothers postcard scene, because I wanted to replace it with Sōyā's version of finding out about the Hollow Shadow. There were also a few other minor scenes cut out, but nothing else to major. Otherwise, this chapter came out very well in my eyes. I'm actually enjoying my OC more than I thought I would, mainly because I don't have to conform him to characteristics a already existent character would have. It gives me more freedom with him. I also am going back to chapter one and editing the use of the word "Youmu" and chaning it to "Yomu", because I like that version better as its easier on the eyes for some reason. I've also changed a few uses of honorifics, if you noticed. Besides that, the main part of this chapter, to me at least, was the main introduction of Ai, and finding out Sōyā's affection of her, which isn't returned...yet.**

 **Now next chapter is going to be interesting to do. Most of you know that Episode 3 is basically the calm before the storm, with everything leading up to the last 5-ish minutes to introduce the Hollow Shadow. I want to really keep it close to how it's portrayed and insert Sōyā, but I'm finding it difficult to fit him in appropiately. I'm probably going to end up cutting out some short minor scenes people probably won't remember, but unless I can find a good way to intergrate him into the canon story and have a good side story with just him, It'll be a relatively lomng next chapter.**

 **Besides that, I want to thank you for reading my story! Beyond the Boundary doesn't have that many stories and I think thats a shame, so I'm gonna try and fix that by adding a story I hope people will enjoy! If you liked the chapter, make sure to follow/favorite to be notified when I post another chapter! If you have any kind of criticism or advice, leave a review telling me what you think! I read all reviews and reply to most all, so anything from critique all the way to flames is welcome! Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Inside the Boundary**

 **Moonlight Purple**

Authors Note at the bottom!

Enjoy!

* * *

Today had been a rather plain day for Akihito and everyone really. His mind had been stuck on the Hollow Shadow and how his mother had warned him to stay away from it. He was almost as worried about the Hollow Shadow as he was about the sanity of his mother, but that problem was for another day.

It was currently time for lunch, and Akihito was looking for Kuriyama-san, hoping she would be in the lunchroom trying to scrape together enough for a meal. He entered the cafeteria and looked around for Kuriyama, but he didn't see her. That meant she likely didn't have enough money for a full meal here. As he was about to turn and leave, he was called to by a someone walking towards him.

"Kanabra-senpai!" The high, girlish voice said to him. He turned his head to the side to be greeted by Ai, who was holding what appeared to be her lunch tray. "Eating in the cafeteria today?" She asked innocently.

"Uh," He said slowly. "Something like that...say Ai-chan, how do you eat when you're so broke you can't afford something?"

Ai put on a thinking face.

"Good question." She said unknowingly. "I guess I would be eating a cup of noodles. They're very cheap in the rec room."

Akihito then figured she was right, and that Kuriyama was almost surely eating cheap noodles in there.

"Thanks Ai-chan," Akihito said graciously as he walked out of the cafeteria door, not waiting for a response from Ai.

* * *

After a short walk of about 3 minutes, Akihito entered the student rec room to find Kuriyama-san steadily nibbling on a piece of shrimp from a noodle cup.

"I see," he said triumphantly. "So this is were you went."

"Senpai!" Kuriyama exclaimed when she saw Akihito walking towards her. "What are you doing here?"

"Well I heard you defeated a yomu," Akihito said almost proudly.

"That's none of your business," Kuriyama shot back.

"Well," He said Matter of factually. "Mitsuki left it with me, so I had it appraised by Ayaka-san." As he finished talking, he pulled a 10,000 Yen note out of his pocket and held it out in front of her. Kuriyama looked at it in shock.

"T-Ten thousand Yen?!" She stuttered out shocked. "That's how much that Yomu was worth?!"

As she sat in shocked, the piece of shrimp clutched between the end of her chopsticks fell as she shook from the news, causing her disappointment when she attempted to put it in her mouth.

"Ah," She exclaimed. "My lat piece of shrimp...!"

Akihito smiled at the childishness she showed.

"Take it," He said sweetly while holding the yen note closer to her. Her arms moved forwards towards the note to accept but her mouth spoke different.

"I said I don't need it." She whined as she inced closer to the note with her eyes closed.

"Calm down," Akihito said. "Your body language and mouth says otherwise."

"Do you realize how many cups of ramen I can buy with that?!" She exclaimed. This made Akihito laugh at her and how she reacted in front of such money.

"That's why I said you could have it." He said as he held out his hand towards her more. "Just take it."

As she grabbed the note, she looked down shamefully.

"I cannot take it," She whined loudly. Akihito frowned because she still held onto the bill.

"Then why do you still have the bill," He questioned. "Your words ring hollow to me."

Kuriyama accepted the bill grudgingly and placed it into her pocket while turning the other way.

"Now moving right along," Akihito said casually. "Why don't you drop by our club today?"

Kuriyama looked down almost as if she was sad.

"I already told you," She said quietly. "Please do not meddle in my affairs anymore."

Akihito looked on in disappointment.

"After all the times you've used me as target practice," He said almost hurt. "You can't come to the club?"

Kuriyama got up and walked away. "I won't target you anymore." She said as she walked towards the machine hosting various foods and drinks.

"It's a little late for all the times you've already done it." Akihito said with a tone of irritation in his voice. After that, Kuriyama got up and walked towards the door, obviously done with the conversation.

"First you insist on chasing me," Akihito said annoyed. "Now you're running away."

Kuriyama looked back and gave him a cold stare, before turning away while mumbling "Fuyukai desu".

"I guess I'll have to try again later," Akihito said, before feeling a pair of hands placed on his waist.

"So that's Mirai Kuriyama?" Someone spoke.

"Hiroomi," Akihito said coldly. "What are you doing?"

Akihito heard Hiroomi answer back swiftly.

"I'm putting my hands on your waist Akkey," he responded like it was nothing.

" _I need more friends."_ Akihito thought as he walked away.

* * *

As Kuriyama was walking towards her class, she was thinking about all sorts of things, but was interrupted by bumping into someone, who turned out to be Nino-san.

"Ahh," Nino said relieved. "Kuriyama-san, I never did tell you. I'm a teacher here."

She looked around and then leaned in to her ear.

"Did you hear about the Hollow Shadow?" She was met without an answer.

"I guess not," She said. "Makes sense because you're newer here. It's supposed to enter town this evening. If one could defeat it, they could lay off for an entire year with the reward money, but you'd need to be a cat with 9 lives to get it down.

"Is that right?" Kuriyama said curiously.

"Yup," Nino-san said confidently. "We've been told that its too dangerous and to stay away from it. Make sure you steer clear of it!"

She looked and sounded as if she was about to say more, but 2 boys were running down the hall, promoting her turn around and follow them, yelling at them to slow down. This left Kuriyama alone to her thoughts, as she decided to take a walk.

" _I need to think."_ She thought to herself as she walked down the hall.

* * *

The end of the school day had finally reached everyone, and Sōyā was probably the least excited for the school day to end, which was indubitably one of the more ironic things of the day. Instead of going straight home and preparing for what he would be doing in town tonight, he decided to stop but the literary club room and see how Akihito was doing.

He eventually made it to the club room to be greeted by Mitsuki-chan leaving, with a look a apparent irritation on her face.

"Perverts." She mumbled as she made her way down the hall, presumably to go home. Sōyā looked into the club room to see both Akihito and Hiroomi's heads laying down on the table with sadness and joy on there faces at the same time. He was curious, but he didn't want to know.

"Oi," Sōyā said to gather there attention. The two looked up at Sōyā. "I'm going home to prepare." He looked primarily at Hiroomi next. "I'll see you later tonight," he said in a serious tone to Hiroomi. Hiroomi nodded, as did Akihito. Akihito had been informed on whats going on as well, so he was at least partially kept in the loop.

"I'll see you later Sōyā," Hiroomi said calmly. "Be safe tonight."

Sōyā nodded and waved his hand at the two, leaving the room as he did so.

" _I guess it's time to head home for a bit._ " Sōyā thought. He looked at his pocket-watch. _"Ai-chan...I hope you'll be alright for now."_

* * *

After getting home and resting for a little bit, Sōyā got everything ready that he would need for tonight. It wasn't like it was all that much, just what he would consider the necessities. That was mainly his pocket-watch and his cell phone. He also stuff a little bit of money in his pocket in case he wanted to eat or drink something. It was weird, because even tho he was doing a rather important job, regular humans had no idea the danger of the night, so it would be a regular evening/night for them.

Hiroomi told him to put up what he thought was sufficient. He decided instead of a dozen small barriers, he'd put just 4 larges one up, almost so they would protect there weak sides. After all the barriers were placed, he'd go to Ayaka-san's building and check on Ai. He doubted that Ayaka would sit calmly during this kind of event, but he knew she wouldn't allow Ai to go out when it was this dangerous. He knew Ayaka would be smart enough not to leave Ai alone on this night without the least bit of protection, so there was probably a barrier or two up around the building as well.

"This is gonna be a long night," Sōyā said to himself. "I guess it's just easier to move without complaining.

As he waled towards the inner city, he slipped his pocket-watch around from his pocket to around his neck, where it glowed slightly for a few seconds and returned to normal.

" _I really hope I don't need to use this."_ Sōyā thought to himself as he began his important job.

* * *

Akihito's POV

Walking along the sidewalk, Akihito was making his way over to Kuriyama's apartment. He was going to check on her to make sure she didn't do anything stupid tonight. After talking to Mitsuki after school, he was worried at what Kuriyama might attempt. He didn't want her to hurt herself, or worse, get herself killed.

" _Kuriyama-san..."_ Akihito thought to himself. _"Please don't do anything irrational."_

* * *

After about an hour and a half, 4 large barriers, and about 10 aggressive yomu, Sōyā was finally finished with his main task at hand. Now all that was left was to go by Ayaka-san's building to check for Yomu and see if Ai was alright. Luckily he wasn't to far from the shop, so he would be there any second.

After a short walk, Sōyā reached the hop without any hard troubles. The door was unlocked, which made little sense but he wasn't to worried. He walked in and made his way to the back of the building, calling out "Ai-chan" along the way. He didn't get a response, he stopped and listened carefully. He could he a meowing in the room were Ayaka-san did the appraisals. He entered the room and saw a small but what looked liked to be an aggressive Yomu staring at the shelf on the mall, which was occupied by a Scottish Fold cat, with white tips on its ears. Sōyā immediately saw that this was Ai, and he jumped in to dispose of the Yomu.

He grabbed the Yomu by the body and threw it against the wall. The Yomu was stunned for a second, but got back up quickly and snarled. Sōyā took his pocket-watch off his neck and swung the chain around until it came into contact with the yomu. The yomu in return screamed in pain as it disintegrated quickly, dropping a small shiny pebble with a stone. He walked over to the stone calmly and picked it up, pocketing it quietly. He then looked over to Ai, who was still in her cat form.

"Alright Ai-chan," Sōyā said with a smile. "It's alright now. Come one down."

Immediately, Ai jump down, transforming into her human form as she hit the ground. She immediately jumped towards Sōyā and wrapped him in a hug, nearly crying as well.

"Sōyā," she said relieved. "Thank you so much."

Sōyā blushed immensely, but he returned the hug softly, letting Ai calm down. After about 2 minutes of calming, Ai finally let go and smiled at Sōyā.

"Why are you here?" Ai asked curiously. "I thought you'd be out helping everyone else."

Sōyā smiled. "I actually was." he said happily. "I actually was putting up a few barriers around the city so the Hollow Shadow and Yomu would be somewhat confided and away from the populous. I think it worked well"

Things were silent until Sōyā spoke again.

"After I finished everything else up," He said sweetly. "I came to check on you because I knew there was a good chance you'd be alone. Glad I got here when I did too, aren't I?"

Sōyā blushed when he said this, and thankfully he hid it from Ai.

"Well I'm glad you came to my rescue," Ai said cheerfully. "I'm also glad I got to see you today! How long are you gonna stay here?"

Sōyā thought about it in his head. "I guess I'll rebuild the barrier around the place and make it yomu proof, and then maybe get something to drink. After that, I'm off."

Ai's face fell a bit.

"I thought maybe you would stay with me so I wouldn't be lonely." Ai pouted. This made Sōyā grin playfully.

"I wish," he said sadly. "But if I'm gone, you can try out clothes for the Lantern Festival. I know you always go with Ayaka-san. You wouldn't want to not look as beautiful as always, would you?"

Ai blushed at being called beautiful. He was right.

"I guess you're right," She admitted with defeat and a smile. "I guess I can pick one out by myself. Let me get you a drink for the road. Do you want coffee?"

Sōyā shooed his head no and just said "Bottled Water". Ai nodded her head eagerly and went to fetch his request. While she was doing that, he set up another barrier and reinforced it. Ai soon came out with a bottle of water and Sōyā got everything ready for going to the edge of town.

"Thanks again for helping me back there," Ai said with a soft and sweet smiley to Sōyā. "When you get done with everything, you should come back so I can show you what I'm gonna wear!"

Sōyā went redder than a tomato, and did nothing to hide it because he simply couldn't.

"I'll take you up on that offer Ai-chan." He said, giving her a thumbs up and smile. "I'll make it a priority, I promise yah."

Ai smiled at this.

"Good luck," she said as she waved. "Be safe Sōyā-kun!"

Sōyā waved back and headed out the door and stopped after the first step and thought to himself.

" _Did she just say Sōyā-kun?"_

Sōyā had a lot to think about on the way to Hiroomi's location.

* * *

Out on the edge of the city limits, Hiroomi was standing on a cliff, facing a black looking cloud, which was the Hollow Shadow. He summoned up a large wide barrier which blocked the pathway of the Hollow Shadow. It impacted with the barrier, and sparks shot intensely. It seemed to be deflecting the dark natured yomu, but that didn't seem like his biggest problem at the moment.

Because of the Hollow Shadow's presence, Hiroomi was being surrounded by a pack out vicious dog appearing yomu, apparently a pack. Hiroomi sighed and pulled his scarf out slowly.

"This is gonna be a long night," He said quietly to himself. " Sōyā, you better not take your sweet time. I don't wanna be doing this all alone."

Hiroomi whipped his scarf towards to what looks like the alpha male yomu. This night was gonna be long and hard.

* * *

 **Authors Note – Well here's chapter 3, Moonlight Purple! This was an episode that was actually pretty bland for the most part in the episode, so it kinda transitioned over to the chapter writing as well, and there was nothing I could do about it honestly. I tried to keep it pretty vanilla compared to the actual episode. I think I did a decent job at it too, but I did cut a few parts out. The main one was most of Akihito's interactions with Kuriyama. I cut them out mostly because I'll be referencing them in past tense in the coming chapters, and I just didn't wanna write it.**

 **Next chapter is gonna be a pretty big chapter plot wise and relationship wise for both Sōyā/Ai and Akihito/Kuriyama. I'm actually really excited to start typing it, but I'm not gonna start for a few days to relax, and I don't wanna burn myself out all to quickly. Otherwise, I really don't have much too say about this chapter, thanks for reading!**

 **If you enjoyed the chapter and want to be notified when I update, Follow/Favorite the chapter to receive updates! Also leave a review if you have any suggestions or feedback for the story! I take all criticism with happiness! Thanks for reading!**


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